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Miller, who testified before the House Ways and Means Committee on Friday, also came under pressure during Tuesday’s hearing. GOP lawmakers are especially angry at him for failing to disclose the targeting program.

Miller was briefed on the controversial practice on May 3, 2012, but didn’t reveal it in at least two subsequent letters written to lawmakers seeking details about how the IRS was reviewing nonprofit groups.

“You just sat on that guilty knowledge,” Hatch told Miller. “That’s a lie by omission.”

As he did on Friday, Miller insisted he never lied to Congress and disputed charges that the IRS targeted groups for their political affiliations.

“We were not politically motivated in targeting conservative groups,” he said.

Republicans on the panel did not accept Miller’s assurances that employees in Cincinnati weren’t influenced by political motives. Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) encouraged George to further investigate whether bias played a role in the targeting of conservative groups by potentially placing employees under oath.

“I don’t know how we could come to the conclusion that this was not politically motivated,” Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) said.

Still, Miller acknowledged that the agency hasn’t effectively managed the scandal. The controversial program only came to light on May 10, when Lois Lerner, the director of the IRS tax exempt program, revealed it in response to a planted question at a Washington legal conference.

“We thought we would get out an apology,” Miller said. “It did not work. Obviously, the entire thing was an incredibly bad idea.”

Baucus and Hatch have worked closely together to investigate the IRS targeting program. In a letter to Miller on Monday, they broadened their probe into the practice, asking the agency to explain how it reviewed applications for a wide range of tax exemptions — not just the requests for 501(c)(4) status at the center of the current scandal.